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CRM IN HOSPITALITYINDUSTRY(A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF MAURYA SHERATON & PRIDE HOTELS) SUBMITTED TO:- Ms. ANURUPA SINGH
SUBMITTED BY:-CRM GP-6NANDITA NEGINIDHI ANANDNIDHI RANIRANJANA PRIYASEEMA KALKHANDASUMEDHA KUMARI.
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HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY – AN OVERVIEW
Hospitality is all about offering warmth to someone who looks for help at a strange or
unfriendly place. It refers to the process of receiving and entertaining a guest with
goodwill. Hospitality in the commercial context refers to the activity of hotels,
restaurants, catering, inn, resorts or clubs who make a vocation of treating tourists.
Helped With unique efforts by government and all other stakeholders, including hotel
owners, resort managers, tour and travel operators and employees who work in the sector,
Indian hospitality industry has gained a level of acceptance world over. It has yet to go
miles for recognition as a world leader of hospitality. Many take Indian hospitality
service not for its quality of service but India being a cheap destination for leisure
tourism.
With unlimited tourism and untapped business prospects, in the coming years Indian
hospitality is seeing green pastures of growth. Availability of qualified human resources
and untapped geographical resources give great prospects to the hospitality industry. The
number of tourists coming to India is growing year after year. Likewise, internal tourism
is another area with great potentials.
The hospitality industry is a 3.5 trillion dollar service sector within the global economy. It
is an umbrella term for a broad variety of service industries including, but not limited to,
hotels , food service, casinos, and tourism. The hospitality industry is very diverse and
global. The industry is cyclical; dictated by the fluctuations that occur with an economy
every year.
Today hospitality sector is one of the fastest growing sectors in India. It is expected to
grow at the rate of 8% between 2007 and 2016. Many international hotels including
Sheraton, Hyatt, Radisson, Meridien, Four Seasons Regent, and Marriott International are
already established in the Indian markets and are still expanding.
Nowadays the travel and tourism industry is also included in hospitality sector. The boom
in travel and tourism has led to the further development of hospitality industry.
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The hospitality industry consists of companies within the food services , accommodations
, recreation and entertainment sectors.
The hospitality industry is a several billion dollar industry that mostly depends on the
availability of leisure time and disposable income. A hospitality unit is such a restaurant,
hotel or even an amusement park consists of multiple groups such as facility
maintainance, direct operations(servers, housekeepers, porters,kitchen workers,
bartenders,etc.) management, marketing and human resources.
Usage rate is an important variable for the hospitality industry. Just as a factory owner
would wish to have his or her productive asset in use as much as possible ( as opposed to
having to pay fixed costs while the factory isint producing), so do restaurants, hotels and
theme aprks seek to maximize the number of customers they “process”.
In viewing various industries, “barriers to entry” by new comers and competitive
advantages between current players are very important. Among other things , hospitality
industry players find advantage in old classics(location), initial and ongoing investment
support (reflected in the material upkeep of facilities and the luxuries located there in) ,
and particular themes adopted by the marketing arm of the organization in question ( such
as a restaurant called the 51st fighter group that has a WW2 theme in music and other
environmental aspects). Very important is also the characterstics of the personnel workin
in direct contact with the customers. The authenticity, professionalism and actual concern
for the happiness and wellbeing of the customers that is communicated by successful
organizations is a clear competitive advantage.
In 2003-04 the hospitality industry contributed only 2% of the GDP.
However, it is projected to grow at a rate of 8.8% between 2007-16, which would place
India as the second-fastest growing tourism market in the world. This year the number of
tourists visiting India is estimated to have touchedthe figure of 4.4 million. With this
huge figure, India is becoming the hottest tourist destination. The arrival of foreign
tourists has shown a compounded annual growth of 6 per cent over the past 10 years.
Besides, travel and tourism is the second highest foreign exchange earner for India.
Moreover, it is also estimated that the tourism sector will account for nearly 5.3 per cent
of GDP and 5.4 per cent of total employment.
GDP Employment Visitor Export Personal T&T Capital Investment Govt. Expenditure
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Outlook for 2006 :- 7.80% 1.40% 10.90% 6.90 % 8.30% 7.70%
Outlook for 2007-2016 :- 6.60% 1.00% 7.80% 6.70% 7.80% 6.60%
ATITHI DEVO BHAVO (guest is God)- we have all heard this phrase many times
during our childhood from our parents and grand-parents. We can also find its presence
in the earliest Vedas and religious epics. Hospitality is deep-rooted in our traditions and
comes as an integral part of our heritage. In very simple terms, hospitality is the art of
being warm to strangers and has been derived from the Latin word hospitalitem,
which means "friendliness to guests". The hospitality industry covers a diverse range
of establishments in the form of accommodation, food and drinks. It includes hotels,
motels, restaurants, bars, ships, airlines and railways. The concept of hospitality business
started when people started traveling away on business and they needed a place away
from home which could cater to all their needs. Today hospitality has evolved from the
basic food and accommodation industry and taken a very important position in almost all
businesses. In fact, it has become a huge industry and drives economies across the globe.
The scope of hospitality/ service industry today is far more than one could have ever
imagined a few years back. Earlier people who graduated from a Hotel School could get
employed either in Hotels, Cruises or Airlines.
But service is the BUZZ word for all businesses today. Be it the Retail Sector, Banking
Industry, BPO, Telecom world, Real Estate or any other sector having direct customer
contact, a person with hospitality background has an edge above the rest, because of their
sheer capability of understanding the needs of a customer better and handling difficult
customers/ situations efficiently. Hotel industry depends largely upon the foreign tourist
arrivals further classified into business travellers (around 65% of the total foreign
tourists) and leisure travellers. The following figures show that business as well as the
leisure travellers (both domestic and international) formed major clientele for hotels in
2004.Over the last two years, the hotel industry has seen higher growth rates due to
greater number of tourist arrivals, higher occupancy rate (being around 75% in FY'06)
and significant increase in average room rate (ARR). The major factors contributing to
this growth include stable economic and political conditions, booming service industry,
FDI inflow, infrastructure development, emphasis on tourism by the central as well as
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state governments and tax rationalization initiatives to bring down the tax rates in line
with the international levels.
Top players of the industry
The top players in hospitality sector include the following:
ITC Hotels
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Indian Hotels Company Ltd. (The Taj Hotels Resorts & Palaces)
Oberoi Hotels (East India Hotels)
Hotel Leela Venture
Asian Hotels Ltd.
Hotel corporation of India
ITDC hotels
Some of the main features of the Indian hotel industry include the following:
The industry is more dependent on metropolitan cities as they account for 75% to
80% of the revenues, with Delhi and Mumbai being on top.
The average room rate (ARR) and occupancy rate (OC) are the two most critical
factors that determine profitability. ARR depends on location, brand image, star
rating, quality of facilities and services offered. The occupancy rate depends on
other seasonal factors.
India is an ideal destination for tourists. Approximately 4.4 million tourists visit
India every year. Thus the growth prospects are very high.
In the hotel sector, a number of multinationals have strengthened their
presence. Players like Four Seasons are also likely to enter the Indian market in the
near future. Moreover, Indian hotel chains are also expanding internationally. A
combination of all these factors could result in a strong emergence of budget hotels,
which could potentially lower the cost of travel and related cost.
Classification of Hospitality industry
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5 Star and 5 Star Deluxe . These are mainly situated in the business districts of
metro cities and cater to business travelers and foreign tourists. These are
considered to be very expensive. These account for about 30% of the industry.
Heritage Hotels . These are characterized by less capital expenditure and greater
affordability and include running hotels in palaces, castles, forts, hunting lodges,
etc.
Budget Hotels: Budget hotels cater mainly to domestic travelers who favor
reasonably priced accommodations with limited luxury. These are characterized
by special seasonal offers and good services.
Unclassified: These are low-priced motels spread throughout the country. A low-
pricing policy is their only selling point. This segment accounts for about 19 % of
the industry.
CONTRIBUTION TO INDIAN ECONOMY
5 Star and 5 Star Deluxe
Heritage Hotels
Budget Hotels
Unclassified
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The Indian hospitality industry is going great guns presently, with high operating margins
and increase in the number of travellers visiting India - both inbound and outbound. Thus,
the only direction left for the sector points upwards. However, what needs to be focussed
on is the fact that opportunities are not missed, which presently include the large gaps in
rooms supply as compared to demand.
India has approximately 100,000 rooms only in totality, which is lesser than that
in Las Vegas, besides contributing to an insignificant portion of the GDP - just 5.4
per cent says Sudeep Jain, executive director of JLLM.
In comparison to nations like China, Thailand and Malaysia where the hospitality
share ranges between 12 and 15 per cent, India's growth potential is boundless.
"By 2020, the hospitality and tourism sector would be a major contributor to the
Indian economy," says Jain. South Asia is and will remain a must-visit destination
and India is looking more and more lucrative.
Within the nation, major contribution as destinations will be from the growing tier I and
II cities with a special emphasis on business hotels across categories as well as the prime
leisure destinations like Goa, Rajasthan, etc, which will remain on the growth path,
creating the aura for India as a leisure destination. Accordingly, the needs of the traveller,
will be nothing less than perfection. Jain says, "They will be more discerning and more
value conscious." With an increase in choices available, they will be less forgiving of
service deficiencies. Guests will require higher levels of service in the full-service
segments, which will warrant greater training requirements for hotel staff. The limited
service hotels will require a complete shift in the perception of customer service.
Nevertheless, this is directly related to the travellers' travel persona. "The same person
will have different standards when he/she is on a business trip, versus an escape with his
partner versus a leisure trip with the family," he explains.
The driving force
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Being part of a real estate money management and services company, there are various
driving factors for growth opportunities. It is believed that if the country is able to sustain
its economic growth specially in the service sector, it will have a direct influence on the
hotel industry. This is directly related to the incoming foreign investments, not just in
the hotels but the economy as a whole. Also equally important is the fact that India has
now discovered the power of marketing and with campaigns like Incredible India,
there are also the various large scale regional and global events like the upcoming
Commonwealth Games, Asian Games and the recent Indian Premiere League that builds
interest about the nation. "These are just external factors. The policies and incentives
that will be provided over the next decade could further act as a catalyst to this
industry," . Apart from these external factors there are other factors where the industry
can be given a great boost.
For instance if land prices became more realistic, the process of getting approvals and
licences to build and operate hotels are streamlined, together with strong infrastructure
development and investment and more tax/levy incentives being provided to build hotels,
it would prove very fruitful for the industry. It is believed that there would be no
stopping the growth in the industry if these measures were undertaken. But the fact
remains that half of these changes will only occur if the government begins to take some
proactive measures and provide the much needed stimuli to further accelerate
development.
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Challenges For Hospitality Industry
1. Shortage of skilled employees : One of the greatest challenges plaguing the
hospitality industry is the unavailability of quality workforce in different skill
levels. The hospitality industry has failed to retain good professionals.
2. Retaining quality workforce : Retention of the workforce through training and
development in the hotel industry is a problem and attrition levels are too high.
One of the reasons for this is unattractive wage packages. Though there is boom
in the service sector, most of the hotel management graduates are joining other
sectors like retail and aviation.
3. Shortage of rooms: The hotel industry is facing heavy shortage of rooms. It is
estimated that the current requirement is of 1,50,000 rooms. Though the new
investment plan would add 53,000 rooms by 2011, the shortage will still persist.
4. Intense competition and image of India: The industry is witnessing
heightened competition with the arrival of new players, new products and new
systems. The competition from neighboring countries and negative perceptions
about Indian tourism product constrains the growth of tourism. The image of
India as a country overrun by poverty, political instability, safety concerns and
diseases also harms the tourism industry.
5. Customer expectations: As India is emerging as a destination on the global
travel map, expectations of customers are rising. The companies have to focus
on customer loyalty and repeat purchases.
6. Manual back-end: Though most reputed chains have IT enabled systems for
property management, reservations, etc., almost all the data which actually make
the company work are filled in manual log books or are simply not tracked.
7. Human resource development: Some of the services required in the tourism
and hotel industries are highly personalized, and no amount of automation can
substitute for personal service providers. India is focusing more on white collar
jobs than blue collar jobs. The shortage of blue collar employees will pose
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various threats to the industry.
Recommendations to the government
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The government could constitute a steering committee to review the demand and supply
of the human resources in the hospitality industry and prepare plans for developing
qualitative human resources which are required for the present day global industry. The
committee should constitute with the members from all concerned areas like :
State and central tourism development commissioners
Representatives from all areas of hospitality industry
Member’s / president / secretary of the hotel management associations
Member’s / president / secretary of the travel and tourism association
Representative from hotel employees associations
One member representative from international hotel chain
The committee should review the present situation and suggest the steps to be taken to
reduce the gap between the demand and supply of human resources in the industry. The
committee should concentrate on the following issues mainly :
Create a policy on industry institute interaction
Establish an apex body t coordinate all the management institutes in the country.
For conducting common entrance test for all Govt. university / AICTE / private
institutes in the country
Curriculum development from time to time as industry requirement
Fees structure for different courses in different institutes
Appoint a committee to identify the requirements of qualified manpower for
International Hotels and also identify the ways to develop
Recommendations to the hospitality industry :
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Tie – ups with institutes :
It is the duty of the Industry t makes necessary tie-up / arrangement for their
required human resources with one or two hospitality institutes in the country.
Continuous training :
There is a need of continuous training to all categories of employees in the
organization. When they have a tie – up with the institutes, the institutes will
offer in – house training to different category of employees from time to time to
update their skills.
Sponsoring:
It is the duty of the industry to sponsor some amount / equipment to the institute
for their betterment. if possible the sponsor a chair for continuous funding and
research for that institute .
Research :
Every institute must spend some amount for the research which is essential for
further development and understand the present situation. The industry should
involve in the researchers by providing timely information and data which is
ultimately useful for them only.
THE HOTEL INDUSTRY
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What Is Customer Relationship Management?
CRM entails all aspects of interaction a company has with its customer, whether it is sales or service related. It even uses technology to streamline processes that impact customer loyalty, service delivery and quality management.
CRM is a business strategy; one that puts the customer at the heart of the business. The value of a customer relationship is well recognized by many leading companies, especially by those in the service sector. For high quality hotel enterprises, application of Customer Relationship Management (CRM) is a great opportunity to increase customer value and provides a way to systematically attract, acquire and retain customers. In the future also, customer relationship management and knowledge management together will help businesses accumulate customer knowledge build up better relationships between them and their customers enhance customer satisfaction and achieve business excellence
One of the greatest strength is to attention to details, to focus on the bif abd small little things that make the difference when it comes to comfort, productivity and also the staff. In CRM the detailed attention is made which is unattended and which can really reduce the cost.
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HISTORY OF CRM
Following on from Enterprise Resource Planning or ERP (the business strategy that promised to automate the “back-office”), the term CRM was first coined in the mid-1990s. CRM in those days referred to the software used to help businesses manage their customer relationships. From sales force automation software (SFA) that focused on customer contact management to integrated knowledge management solutions, these were the early foundations of CRM.
The last couple of years have seen the term broaden to encompass a more strategic approach and the investment of billions of dollars worldwide into CRM solutions and services has followedCustomer relationship management is more than the practice of collecting guest-centric data. It’s the art of using historical, personal, and experiential information to personalize a guest’s stay while generating incremental revenue opportunities. Knowing a traveler is an avid sports fan creates the opportunity to market tickets to a game; knowing a guest had a less-than-memorable experience in the hotel restaurant gives you a chance to win them back the next time they are in town.
Microsoft partners have developed a number of leading CRM solutions based on the latest generation of Microsoft technology. Using the Microsoft suite of applications, devices, and technology, Microsoft partners can provide you with CRM solutions that personalize the guest experience and help you generate more revenue.
The Right Technology
It is estimated that the global market for CRM services and solutions is currently worth $148 billion. That means a lot of choice when selecting your technology - from web-based solutions aimed at small businesses with less than 10 employees to solutions suitable for multi-national enterprises with millions of customers.
I have taken at look at the most widely used solutions and services and listed them in our CRM Application Guide. Although this is certainly not an exhaustive list, it will give you a good idea of what’s out there.
The Future
CRM has already made a big impact in the world of Customer Service and will continue to do so. As more and more companies become customer-centric those that fail to do so will lose competitive advantage. As technology increases to develop at a startling rate the key emphasis will be how we can fully utilize it within our business.
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However let's not lose sight of the fact that Customer Relationship Management is about people first and technology second. That’s where the real value of CRM lies, harnessing the potential of people to create a greater customer experience, using the technology of CRM as the enabler.
CRM may or may not prove to be the answer to providing excellent customer care, but the philosophy of putting customers at the heart of our business is definitely a step in the right direction.
Key Benefits
Maintain one set of customer information and make that accessible (role based) wherever and whenever it is needed.
Enable to have a 360-degree view of the customer and achieve excellence. Increase in customer acquisition, retention, loyalty and profitability. Automate the sales process; increase in number of opportunities through constant
follow-ups. Empower sales team with real-time pipeline and forecasting to direct focus to
most profitable opportunities. Quickly identify and provide response to your most profitable customer issues
and prospects. Enable marketing professionals to quickly measure response to marketing
initiatives (Advertisement, Exhibition, Trade shows, Cold calls, E-mails, TV shows etc.) Real-time basis and leverage the most successful campaigns.
Achieve customer satisfaction by decreasing customer response time. Reduce call-handling time by providing knowledge base that incorporates
powerful search capability in order to quickly locate the relevant data and solve customer problems.
Document management saves time in searching the required document when on-line with the customer.
Send and receive fax from the application. Schedules appointments, meetings, calls. Set reminders; keep you alert of all the
important activities. Marketing activity reports are available on-line for analysis and immediate action
Some Applications of Technology in CRM
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1. Call centers: These are organizations which deal directly to the customer interactions. These are otherwise known as "Customer Care Centre" or "Contact Centre" indicating more technological sophistication and multichannel support. Call centre technologies entered the market place to effectively alleviate some of the repeat work and increase efficiencies, allowing companies to handle escalating call volumes. Customer Service Representatives (CSRs) could look up similar calls and resolutions while a customer was on the phone, without having to repeat research. The software tools being used in the call-centers also provide forecasting of call volumes to ensure adequate call centre staffing. (Lemon, et al, 2002)
2. Web based self-service: The customers themselves, without the help of a live person can resolve their problems or find out answers to their queries using the web. This model is founded on the principle of enabling customers, partners and employees to obtain information’s or conduct transactions directly over the internet, avoiding time-consuming and costly traditional processes involving multiple verbal or written interactions. It provides control, performance, convenience and efficiency.
3. Customer satisfaction measurement: Survey mails are the major way for companies to monitor customer satisfaction. Nowadays, these survey forms are even personalized to specific customers or customer groups. Responses are input into customer databases and included as part of individual customer profiles. Such tracking of customer satisfaction over time enables a company to fine tune how it communicates with its customers according to their preferences. (Mohan Babu, 2003) Now, the paper based surveys are giving way to electronic surveys.
4. Call-scripting: Automatic scripts generated for customer service representatives, based on an individual customer's segment and/or customer profile contents. Scripts remove the guess work from determining how to respond to a customer query or complaint, guiding representatives through a dialogue with the customer and thus optimizing discrete customer interactions.
5. Cyber agents: This is a kind of an improved or modified form of the concept of self-service. Cyber agents are 'lifelike representatives' normally depicted on a company’s web site as a real person. This attempt to pull together the best of both personalization and advanced technology. It is given a personality and is having facial expressions and volume. Usually a cyber agent addresses the web visitor with his/her first name. It can draw from the wealth of detailed information to answer basic FAQs as well as guide a customer to the appropriate screen for a definite purpose/action.
6. Web site: It is the efficient and effective use of worldwide web for providing information to the customers, by a company who had created that site, in a hassle-free manner. The main advantage of a web site is its 24 hours accessibility. Usually gathering information from the site is a simple task and is cost-effective. In the US and in the developed countries web is extensively used. In the case of monetary transactions, if it is a high involvement activity most of the customers prefer the offline mode mainly due to their concern over security problems in monetary transactions, through the net. (Key Note , 2003)
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CRM IN HOTEL INDUSTRY
Industry Definition
CRM is a business strategy to select and manage the most valuable customer relationships. CRM requires a customer-centric business philosophy and culture to support effective marketing, sales and service processes. CRM applications can enable effective customer relationship management, provided that an enterprise has the right leadership, strategy and culture. In hospitality, each customer relationship has value and should be managed effectively. There is opportunity for repurchase and recommendation from each past customer. The administration of the information about this past guest and the effective integration of the information into frontline guest services programs is the challenge of CRM implementation.
Tactically, where does CRM start? The recommended implementation of customer relationship management typically looks like. Statistically valid customer satisfaction measurement:From the very top of the organization, there should be a commitment to CRM including customer satisfaction, employee satisfaction and a desire to have one voice to the customer.
With the latest offerings in CRM, hoteliers can:
Develop comprehensive guest profiles from reservation information and demonstrate to guests that the property is in touch with their needs.
Drive guest-centric data down to the transaction level, allowing employees and guest-facing technology to deliver greater value to the guest.
Generate a realistic profile on the spending and stay patterns of guests, allowing the property to create guest-centric marketing for increased loyalty and spending.
It’s All about Technology – Technology certainly plays an important role in the implementation of a successful CRM project. However, it is not a silver bullet that will solve all problems or open all doors. It is important to remember that all technology decisions are only relevant in a business context. All the technology in the world is cool, but if your business processes aren’t set up to effectively utilize these resources, your company will be added to the statistics of failed CRM implementations.
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Implementing an effective CRM solution is not complex. Adequate planning, effective communication, stakeholder involvement and mistake avoidance will ensure that your initiative gets off the ground easily, and places you squarely in the exalted ranks of successful CRM implementers. The first thing you find when looking into the world of Customer Relationship Management is the number of different definitions in use today.
eCRM or Web based CRM
e-CRM application in hotel industry are straddling across business functions to retain, capture and capitalize on customer data, i.e. integrating all aspects of business process and systems by keeping the customers as the core. e-CRM projects are no longer viewed as stand-alone implementations but are now being increasingly pursued in context of larger business objectives and core strategic agendas. Corporations realize that the true values of their customers in down turn are the ones that will be equipped, tied over the slump and jump start, consolidate and thrive.
e-CRM Components in Hotel Industry
Sales functionality: Contact management profiles and history, account management including activities, order entry, proposal generation
Sales management functionality: pipeline analysis (forecasting, sales cycle analysis, temporary alignment and assignment, roll up and drill down reporting).
Telemarketing/Telesales functionality: call list assembly, auto dialing, scripting, order taking.
Time management functionality: single user and group calendar/scheduling, e-mail
Customer service and support functionality: incident assignment, escalation, tracking/reporting, problem management/resolution, order management/promising, warranty/contract management
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Marketing functionality: campaign management, opportunity management, web-based encyclopedia, configuration, market segmentation, lead generations/enhancement/tracking.
Executive information functionality: extensive and easy-to-use reporting
ERP integration functionality: legacy systems, the web, third party external information
Data synchronization functionality: mobile synchronization with multiple field devices, enterprise synchronization with multiple databases/application servers
E-commerce functionality: manages procurement through EDI link and web-server and includes B2B and B2C applications
Service support functionality: Worker orders, dispatching, real time information transfer to field personnel via mobile technologies
Customer Relationship Management Software for the Hotel Industry
Guest Ware is a unique Customer Relationship Management System (CRMS) designed specifically for the lodging industry to provide personalized guest recognition and
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exceptional service quality. Leading hotel management companies use Guest Ware to improve guest satisfaction, lower operating costs, build guest loyalty, and increase revenues. (www.guestware.com)
Guest Ware is installed in over seven hundred hotels and resorts worldwide; including Marriott International, Kimpton Hotel Group, Hyatt Hotels, Star wood and many independent hotels and resorts.
Marketing Solution - The CRM Approach Now more than ever, it is critical for hospitality sales and marketing professionals to maximize their return on investment (ROI) in marketing. Experts agree targeted marketing to existing customers is the best way to increase marketing ROI. Most industry consultants estimate the cost of finding a new customer is between 5 and 10 times the cost of retaining an existing customer.
Improvement Analysis - Implement Process Improvement Industry surveys show that guests are less likely to return if they experience a problem during their stay. Guest Ware’s Improvement Analysis tools provides with the information to eliminate recurring problems and keep guests coming back, so to lower operating costs and increase guest satisfaction at the same time.
Comment Card Tracking - Listen to your Customers Customer survey on restaurant or an extensive questionnaire of guests, the GuestWare Comment Card Tracking system assists to manage customer feedback. Guest Ware will improve productivity in the follow-up process and provide valuable management reports to maximize the benefits of your surveys.
Guest ware Enterprise Solution – For Effective MeansIntended for hotel chains, brands and management companies, the Enterprise Guest Ware database maintains a single view of the customer essentials for CRM. Enterprise Guest Ware enhances property management systems (PMS) and central reservations systems (CRS). It allows hotel companies to implement enterprise CRM while leapfrogging existing hotel technology investments.
Communications Server - Two-way Messaging The Guest Ware Communication Server integrates two-way messaging (or other types of text-based messaging) with Guest Ware’s Rapid Response. It allows staff to receive and close requests and maintenance issues from a pager or cell phone. The software helps streamline service delivery and uses existing e-mail systems or a modem to communicate with most two-way messaging devices.
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With the latest offerings in CRM, Hoteliers can:
Develop comprehensive guest profiles from reservation information and demonstrate to guests/customers that the property is in touch with their needs
Drive guest-centric data down to the transaction level, allowing employees and guest-facing technology to deliver greater value to the guest/customers.
Generate a realistic profile on the spending and stay patterns of guests, allowing the property to create guest-centric marketing for increased loyalty and spending.
ITC Maurya Sheraton - Field selling, Loyalty programs, Reservation systems, Web & Call centers are the major sources of database development. The hotel has 35,000 members in its database. They regard this management of their database as an asset because it enables a superior customer understanding.
Using the Database:Product and service improvement is just one result of tapping into a database. Developing special promotions and employing direct mail to promote these campaigns is another major use of database marketing.
For example: A sales team of Mughal Sheraton, Agra had completed a review of an upcoming weekend. This review revealed that bookings to date were some what below forecast and that a special promotion may be done in order to speed up the business. The sales team then enveloped special promotion packing to encourage bookings for weekends. They searched their welcome break holiday package database and scratched it to identify and segment the customers who tend to (Sheth, 2002):
Book on long weekends Book on a short term basis Respond to promotional campaigns
The direct mailing was used as a principal means to reach out to these customers. Activities like these are today referred to as database marketing. It is aggressive selling to the potential customers who have particular needs and wants and building a match or “fit” the needs of the noted. Therefore, out of the database of 35,000 members, only a few but almost some customers were contacted by direct mailing which resulted in sizeable sale during the otherwise lean weekend at Mughal Sheraton Agra.
Database Mining Starkov, (2006) points out that Database mining is the process to distill the target customers groups out of the massive data files typically found in hospitality operations. In other words, these are systematic ways to distill through a database of a multitude of databases to get the information for which one is reaching.
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Some hotels outsource these tasks to companies that specialize in this field or at best, do it internally. It enables users to easily integrate company/ property management reservations and point of sale systems, automatically extracting operating data from legacy databases for use in the marketing database. The systems analysis tools allow users to profile their most profitable customers, analyze their buying habits, develop & assess the performance of targeted marketing campaigns. The biggest advantage of database mining is that it helps to focus the efforts and available resources into one direction which is most profitable and out-base mining helps to eliminate the non-profitable customers and hence reduces the costs and enhances the profits. The profits enhanced are not only in monetary terms but also in terms of customer loyalty and long term retention. Companies in hospitality that are adopting the database marketing approach to enhance sales are seeing increased customer satisfaction which further results in increased revenues. From the point of view of the internal customers also, a new profession is emerging in the hospitality industry of getting and keeping a customer.
Relationship MarketingRama (2005) suggests that frequent customer programs and database marketing efforts contribute to a more comprehensive approach to satisfying customers called relationship marketing. Relationship marketing depends on the goodwill generated by frequent-buying programs as well as on the information provided from database marketing efforts, goes beyond simple short term awards and involves all the elements of a firm’s and services to encourage a personal relationship with each customer. Relationship marketing is “knowing the customer and using that information to bond with them.” Form the initial personal contact and then serve as the foundation for nurturing this brief encounter into a friendly and accommodation relationship by focusing on personal guest information. In addition to knowing the purchase habits of members (room selection, certain amenity preferences, and so forth), personal information such as spouse’s name and hobbies are added to a member database The company uses this information to tailor special events and products to small segments of the membership.
Complaint Handling Few companies, use or pay attention to complaints. Who wants to hear what they’re doing wrong, especially if the criticism is well founded. It is estimated that 90 percent of dissatisfied customers whose problems were not solved will never do business with the retailers that sold them the product nor will they again buy the product that caused the problem. In case of hotels customer/guest is more likely to switch if the provided service is not satisfactory to their expectation.
On a personal level we all know what our faults are but we get defensive way they’re re pointed out. We’re also aware of weaknesses in our job performance, problems in our organization and imperfections in its products and services. But reacting to criticism is difficult. We tend to respond in a guarded and defensive way, which may avoid squarely confronting the real problem. Likewise, companies tend to let themselves off the hook too easily: “We never could have satisfied that customer.” (Schneider and Bowen, 1999)
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The astonishing news is that those people who do complaint and have their problem taken care of, tend to be more loyal to the company than the people who were satisfied in the first place. World-Class companies see complaints as opportunities to improve, to impress customers and to turn complaining customers into loyal ones.
Priority MarketingPriority Marketing focuses on what’s important to the customer. What is important to one customer however, may not be as important to another.Consider the varying demand placed on a hotel: An airline stewardess may find the 24 hour room-service extremely valuable, a retired couple may need dietary menu options, a tour wholesaler may favor low prices, and a young female executive considers a security a priority.Hotels should break down their services and ask customers what is important to them. This approach can field very valuable insight about changing customer preferences.Identifying groups of customers who have similar preferences or even similar tastes (such as sharing common perceptions of quality or states), hotels can target promotions to capitalize on known characteristics and individualize the presentation. It is important that hotels involve their guests and stay in touch with customer perceptions of current services.
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VALUE CHAIN OF CUSTOMER INTERACTION IN HOTEL INDUSTRY AND POSSIBLE BENEFITS OF e-crm
Customer Research
Pre-sale Interaction
Sale Transaction
Routine Post-sale Interaction
Non-routine Post-sale interaction
Consumer Buying behavior
Payment patterns
Consumer Profiles
Comparison of Hotel products
Customization of products
Clarification of FACs and specific queries
Order placingPayment
Order processing
Payment Processing
Routine information sharing (new products/services, advisory services etc.)
Investment specific information sharing
Short-term payments/ redemptions
On time/ End time settlement
Claims processing in times
AccuracyComprehen-siveness
Decision MakingCustomizationScrutiny
Speed AccuracyDelivery
SpeedTransparency
Accuracy FairnessSpeedTransparency
Source : Raghunath S., Joseph Shields (2001, "Introduction of e-CRM in Indian Hotel Industry, CRM – Emerging concepts, Tata McGraw Hill,).
Activitie
s
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CRM OF ITC MAURYA SHERATON
“Customer Relationship Management is a process of managing customer relations in an organized way”. They aim at managing each “Moment Of Truth” that is experienced by the customer.
There are various contact points where the hotel comes in direct contact with the customer which are known as ‘Touch points’ in the CRM language. These touch points are considered important as there is direct interaction with the customer and they provide valuable input to the hotel. The input provided by the customer has to be captured in such a way that it becomes information and can be used by various processes within the hotel. This can be done with the help of technology and the aim is that whenever there is a customer interface with any of those processes they are able to use that information in servicing the guest in a most efficient manner. Customer Service is now more fashionably called Customer Relationship Management. ITC Maurya Sheraton has been following an unstructured form of CRM with a narrow focus of serving the customer well and in a most efficient manner. The concept of Customer Relationship Management has a broader focus of not only serving the customer but also creating the customer and retaining him for measurable and substantial returns. CRM is a vast subject where the concept of one to one marketing is supported by Database Marketing.
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CRM process at ITC Maurya Sheraton has been divided in 2 steps:-
1. Identification of all Customer Relationship management ‘vehicles’ 2. Integration of these Customer Relationship management ‘vehicles’
DATA CAPTURE VEHICLES
Maurya Sheraton has identified 5 such vehicles (from marketing point of view) which are also the touch points for the hotel in the process of managing its Customer Relationship. These vehicles are:-
o Field selling o Loyalty Programs o Distribution Points o Web o Call Centers
Field SellingWhen a sales group or a marketing executive of the hotel makes a sales call to a corporate, then it is called Field Selling. Field Selling includes Prospecting which means searching and seeking for new customers. Current Accounts are one of the best sources to uncover new business that is within these current accounts, as they harbor many sources of untapped business potential. They also provide Leads and referrals. Leads are potential customers with whom no contact has yet been made and learning of potential customers from current customers is called Referral. Field selling is considered the most important vehicle for the CRM function as the initiative is on the part of the hotel to contact the prospective guest. Since the representative of the hotel meets the customer personally, he is able to strike a chord instantly and has a fair chance of representing the hotel. The difference between the customer and consumer is apparent at this stage as, the person who uses the hotel is a consumer (guest) and the person who helps him make this choice is the customer (link), this link, in most cases, is the administration personnel who are responsible for making reservations. So with the help of field selling, the executive is able to make a direct contact with the ‘link’, the administration person and is able to take the feedback on a continuous basis and helps to customize the offering. The main objective of this is to maintain ‘one to one’ contact with the customer on a regular basis and also to maintain reasonable visibility so that whenever there is a requirement, the hotel is the most obvious alternative for the customer to consider.
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Loyalty Programs
Second vehicle for CRM identified by Maurya Sheraton are the Loyalty Programs. These programs are designed to reward the loyal guests of the hotel. Every time a guest checks in the hotel at his every touch point or interface with the hotel, every time he spends on a service provided by the hotel (use of Room, Restaurant, Laundry, Telephones etc.), the transaction is recorded at each individual point and is added to the final bill presented to the guest at the end of the stay. There are certain points attached to the number of rupees spent by the guest. Therefore higher the amount of the bill, the higher will be the number of points attained by the guest. These points are credited to the account of each guest with the help of technology. These are called Loyalty points. These accounts having the loyalty points are unique to every guest. Therefore, whenever after the first time that guest checks into the hotels, the guest history also affects the loyalty points. The higher the number of points, more loyal is the guest. The points can be redeemed by the guest for either free stays at the hotel or free gifts as listed by the hotel or free meals depending upon the number of points accumulated. The objective of having a loyalty programme is not only to make the guest feel rewarded for his stay but also providing a chance to the guest to reduce them at the hotel, they essentially “gross self” the other services which would be used & paid by the guest. In case he redeemed (for example) his points for a free stay, he would spend on the supporting services like laundry, telephones, restaurants etc. and the revenue generated from these could be earned by the hotel. Therefore, instead of loss of revenue by providing free stay, they actually gain the revenue as well as certain customers for life with the help of the loyalty. The Loyalty Program is called welcome avail which is for the consumer. They have another loyalty programme for the link. The administration personnel, who is called welcome link, is motivated to provide more business to the hotel. Therefore, the more the number of bookings the links gives to the hotel, the more number of points are credited to his accounts which are again redeemable at the hotel either by way of free stay or gifts. This is seen as an important way to keep the source of business motivated towards a long term relationship.
Distribution Points/ Central Reservation System A customer can simply make a call at the reservation centre to make a booking with the hotel. It sounds simple but it could get complex in case he does not receive the expected or the desired response. Therefore, Maurya Sheraton sees this distribution point as an opportunity to establish CRM as the respondents at the reservation centre could turn a prospective customer into a ‘sale’ or could let go off the opportunity to do so by not being polite enough or not giving out the information as desired by the guest. The information regarding all guest reservations is managed through computer
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software, therefore, when a customer make calls to query about a reservation, all his hotel usage history pops up in the system which gives a chance to the executive at the reservations to instantly recognize the customer and address him by his name. T
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his moment of truth is experienced by the customer with a feeling of recognition and feels it as good service at the first touch point itself. The input or instruction received from the customer at the stage is recorded in the reservation system for further reference by the hotel operations. Therefore the wheel does not get reinvented every time a standard instruction is to be followed. This leads to removal of an irritant and that ultimately leads to a satisfied customer willing to return.
World Wide WebThe World Wide Web is part of the internet. It is a computerized, interactive, multimedia system to import and/or access information world wide. It is used for both personal and business purposes. But ITC Maurya’s focus is on the business side of using the web. In hospitality, there are several avenues that one can take up to set up a web site to share information and do business with a potential customer. Since the web gives a convenience and allows the access to information at any time, it is considered as one of the vehicles for CRM. Though Maurya recognizes the potential of this system and is in the process of evolving a filing automated system where the reservations can be made by the customers on time and also the confirmation is received back on a real time basis. Presently they have an information portal which only allows the customer to request a reservation which has to be checked manually by the hotel reservations and then only the confirmations are given. This is a touch point of customer relationship because a speedy and accurate response could win you a customer. And since it is on an individual basis, it is more personalized and customized because the customer puts in his preferences when requesting a booking. Therefore, once it is entered in to the hotel’s data base the customer does not have to repeat his preference as they are automatically suggested by the reservation form on the net.
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CRM OF THE GLORIOUS GROUP OF HOTELS
THE PRIDE HOTEL
OVER VIEW:
The Pride Hotel is one of the best luxury hotels which possesses unparallel elegance and grace. it is a world-class five star hotel, They provide finest amenities and accommodation, exotic cuisine at restaurant with bar, state-of-the-art conference hall and banquet hall to host any occasion. Blending sophisticated urban flamboyance with a relaxed attitude, hotel is ideal for an enthused business trip, social events, or indulgent escape from the chaos of the city.
ROOMS:The rooms are of three types and when we asked them about the rooms they
replied as below: Suite These rooms are designed with a royal finesse, this exquisite Royal Suite is to pamper customer completely. Whether customer is on a social visit or on a holiday, customer can unwind themselves lavishly. Have a look at the suite and customer would not like to go for an alternative”.
Superior Room Traveling on business trips can be clumsy & tiresome. Here is what customer can look forward. A spacious contemporary suite to rejuvenate customer senses along with
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giving them the best of business amenities. Work, Relax - the suite can surmount all your needs graciously.
Deluxe Room Have frequent business visits & desiring the solace of your home? Check out this Deluxe Room. Having essential business aids, this room is expediently designed to make your business trip full of leisure
TARIFFROOM CATEGORY SINGLE
INR US$DELUXE 8000 220SUPERIOR 9000 250SUITES 12000 325
RESTAURANTS:
Seasons The 24 hrs Coffee shops serve delectable cuisines from across the globe and are the perfect place for a quiet rendezvous or dining out with family and friends. Bandhani Savor the essence of royalty at Bandhani, our fine dining multi-cuisine restaurant. The display kitchen is a visual treat to see the exotic specialties created by the experts themselves. Culinary traditions of most exotic and exciting cuisines of the world are characterized by subtle spices and delicate flavors. Whether you are looking for Indian, Chinese, Thai or Continental, we have it all there for you. To add to the excitement, a live band would be playing your favorite numbers. If it is celebrations, it has to be here.
ZING: It is the mocktail lounge bar. It is the only place where there is karaoke, hookahs and exotic mocktails. And a DJ is also there to play customers favorite tracks
BANQUETS:There are 6halls in all which can in all conveniently accommodate up to 1200
people for wedding receptions or from 25 to 800 people theatre style from seminars and conferences. The Imperial, Royal, Majestic, Chancery Halls & Board Room offer
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exclusive layouts & latest gadgets to give you truly memorable conferences, seminars, weddings or parties
.
FACILITIES:Swimming pool and health club, in house laundry, travel desk, business center.
1) Airport transfers2) Welcome drink on arrival3) Fruit basket on arrival4) Buffet breakfast5)24 hour room service6) Refrigerators in all rooms7) hair-driers in all rooms8)24 hours in house satellite TV channels9) Direct dial STD/ISD10) Internet connectivity in all rooms11) Tea and Coffee maker
Majority of the customer are for business purpose because there are very few places to visit in Ahmedabad so mostly people come for the business purpose.
MEMBERSHIP
THE VALUE DIFFERENTIATION IS THROUGH MEMBERSHIP CARDS
Pride hotel provide membership to all those who visit their hotel frequently or vise versa u can say that those who become the member of the hotel become its loyal customers. There are basically 2 types of membership silver and golden and different offers are there for different types of members. There are in all 2000 members which are day by day increasing and front that 1100 holds gold card and 900 holds silver card
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IF YOU ARE A MEMBER OF THE HOTEL THAN……….You will get various discounts which are as follows if u are a silver member of the hotel. These all will be provided in the form of vouchers of Rs. 29999.
1) The member would get the discount on food if he goes with 2 more members.2) Complementary cake on your birthday or wedding if u celebrate in pride3) A reduction of Rs. 500 in the meal at Bandhani restaurant in Ahmedabad4) 20% discount at all the pride hotel of India for accommodation on week days and
30% discount on weekends5) Complementary room for night stay at pride hotel for one person and 40%
discount for two.6) By paying the rack rate they will be allowed to shift or upgrade the superior
category of the room7) Free usage of swimming pool, 20%discount in health club.
IF THE MEMBER IS A GOLD CARD HOLDER…….
He becomes the gold card holder if he pays the amount of Rs. 49999.1) You are entitled to special holiday at 3700 RCI affiliated resorts across the world
for 2 days and 3 nights.2) 50% discount on food and beverages.3) Free usage of swimming pool and 50% discount on health club4) They will send a cake on the day of wedding anniversary or birthday if they are in
the any of the cities where pride is located.5) They will get a voucher of Rs. 900 for meal at Bandhani restaurant in Ahmedabad6) 40% discount at all the pride hotel of India for accommodation on week days and
50% discount on weekdays7) Complementary room of your choice for night stay at pride for 1 person and 50%
discount for 2.
REAL RELATIONS THROUGH….Even though pride is far from that of the airport more foreign visitors are there in pride as compare to the comfort inn and the main reason is its location which is in the middle of the city an other important reason is its quality relation they have kept with their customers.
1) Pride hotel has its own small call center at satellite from where they call and invite the customer to visit their hotel.
2) Birthday and wedding anniversary wishing through calls and e-mails.3) Free airport facilities are provided specially to the loyal customers at their prior
report4) Greet the customer with name
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5) There are 2 rooms which are kept specially for the card holders if they come without any prior intimation
6) If the customer every time prefer the same room and his visits are also at certain period of time then at that time they call them and ask for their visit and keep that room block for them.
7) Also they have a children’s room for the Childers of the member person. They can enter the room after showing the card.
8) And also at the time of Navratri they give the passes to the foreign customers. This is offer especially for the foreign loyal customers. Some time they also give tickets of movies also
9) They also have a travel agent who is available 12 hours every day of year to provide knowledge regarding the places of the city and take them there if necessary.
10) CUSTOMIZED SERVICE: One person of the staff is always there on every floor and the moment they need the person is there in front of the customer’s door.
MINORITIES ARE NOT NEGLECTED LOOK HOW????????
1) Information regarding the customers are taken at the time of checkout because they think that in the beginning customer must be tired.2) all the staff is given training before joining the hotel. A receptionist is given training of 40 days while 15 days to the house keeping person
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SoftwareTHE SOFTWARES WHICH ARE USED BY THE HOTELS
ARE:
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Customer Profiling
An Overview of the Software used in Hotel Industry for Customer Relationship
Management:
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RESEARCH
Objectives of the Study
The primary objective would be:
To study “Customer Relationship Management in the Hotel Industry”.
The other objectives would be:
To study the programs and practices of CRM employed by the leading hotels in India.
To study the measures to build a better relationship between the customer/guest and the hospitality unit.
Scope of the Study
This study will provide an insight into the hotel industry and the steps being taken by them to improve their relationship with their guests/customers.From the study, one can infer the present scenario of the practices and programs being followed by the leading players in this sector and the steps being followed by them to enhance customer retention, customer satisfaction and in turn, leading to enhanced profits and brand image in the minds of the customers.
Findings
A survey was conducted with a sample size of 30. The age of all the candidates was between 20-35, of which 12 were females and 18 were males, the statistics of their occupation and annual income is as follows.
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OCCUPATION
ANNUAL INCOME
BELOW 2 LAKH
2-5LAKH 5-10 LAKH ABOVE 10 LAKH
0
5
10
15
20
25
TOTAL
Series2
Series3
BUSINES
S
PROFESS
IONAL
HOUSEW
IFE
OTHER
0
5
10
15
20
25
TOTAL
Series2
Series3
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QUESTIONNAIRE
Dear Sir/Madam,
We the students of IILM, Gurgaon are conducting a survey on the “Customer Profiling “Customer Profiling process for Hotel Industry in NCR”. Your support in filling this Questionnaire will be highly appreciated and the data or information obtained herewith will be used for academics purpose only. Thank you for your support in our research.
Personal Detail:-Name:-_____________________________
Age:- □ 20 – 35 □ 36-50 □ 50 -65 □ Above 65
Gender: - □ Male □ Female
Occupation: - □ Business □ Professional □ House wife □ Other_______________
Annual Income (in Rs.):- □ Below 2, 00,000 □ 2,00,000 to 5,00,000 □ 6, 00,000 -10, 00,000 □ Above 10,00,000
City:- ______________________________State:- ______________________________Country:-___________________________
(1) In which hotel of NCR do you prefer to stay?(a) Hotel ITC (b) Crowne Plaza(c) Park Plaza(d) Bristol Hotel(e) Others__________________________
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(2) What are the facilities provided by the hotel?(a) Choice of Room(b) Choice of Food(c) Transportation Facility(d) Online Registration(e) Conference Room(f) All of them
3) How frequently you visit this hotel in a year? (a) Less than 3 time
(b) 3 to 5 times(c) More than 5 times
4) The purpose of visiting NCR?a) Businessb) Holidaysc) Professional commitment
5) What are the reasons that lead you to stay in particular hotel? (Rank it from 1 to 7 where 1 is for least relevant reason and 7 is for more relevant reason)
a. On time service _b. Quality of service __c. Employee’s Behavior __d. Ambience __e. Tariff __f. Facility __g. Convenience __
6) How they recognized you as a loyal customer?__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
7) What are the extra services you get in your preferred hotel? __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
8) Do you get any kind of discount?(a) Yes (b) No
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(9) How satisfied are you by the overall hospitality of your preferred hotel?
a) Highly satisfiedb) Satisfactory
(10) Being a loyal customer have you been given preference over the other customers? a) Yes b) No
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ANALYSIS
Q1) PREFERENCE OF HOTEL:
MAURYA SHERATON
PRIDE HOTEL
park plaza
bristol hotel
others
Q2) FACILITIES PROVIDED BY THE HOTEL:
02468
101214161820
MAURYA SHERATONPRIDE HOTEL
CHOICE OF ROOM
CHOICE OF FOOD
TRANSPORTATIONCONFERENCE ROOM
ONLINE REGISTRATION
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Q3) FREQUENCY OF VISITING A PARTICULAR HOTEL:
> 3 TIMES 3 - 5 TIMES < 5 TIMES0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
16
18
MAURYA SHERATONPRIDE HOTEL
Q4) PURPOSE OF VISITING NCR:
02468
1012141618
MAURYA SHERATON
PRIDE HOTEL
BUSINESS HOLIDAYS PROFESSIONALCOMMITTMENT
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Q5) REASON TO STAY IN A PARTICULAR HOTEL:
On time serv
ice
Quality
of serv
ice
Employe
es' beh
avior
Ambience
Tariff
Other fac
ilties
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
Pride HotelMaurya Sheraton
Q6) HOW THEY RECOGNIZED YOU AS A LOYAL CUSTOMER?
To this question most of the people mentioned that it is through their guest records and recognition software that they identify a regular guest and depending upon the number of times of your visit and potential of a future revisit they tag you as a loyal customer.
Q7) WHAT ARE THE EXTRA SERVICES YOU GET IN YOUR PREFERRED HOTEL?
Free safe deposit lockers Full-equipped Business Centre Knight Rider on-line service Arrangements made for golf and tennis Beauty shop 24-hour fax/ telex facilities Secretarial service Currency Exchange Doctor on call High speed internet facility.
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Q8) POSSIBILTY OF GETTING DISCOUNT:
Yes No0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
Pride HotelMaurya Sheraton
Q9) OVERALL SATISFACTION FROM THE HOSPITALITY OFFERED:
Highly satisfactory Satisfactory0
5
10
15
20
25
30
Pride HotelMaurya Sheraton
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Q10) PREFERENCE TO LOYAL CUSTOMERS OVER OTHER CUSTOMERS:
YesNo
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
16
18
Maurya Sheraton
Pride Hotel
Maurya SheratonPride Hotel
CONCLUSION
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From the data collected we have reached a conclusion which states that Hotel Pride (GLORIOUS GROUP) has a better CRM system over the Hotel Maurya Sheraton( ITC GROUP).
Customers prefer it for the choice of food over others. Frequency of customers visiting this hotel is also higher. Customers visiting NCR prefer this hotel for a perfect Holiday stay. The quality of service provided by The Pride Hotel is also highly satisfactory. The extra services such as 24*7 high speed broadband service and provided by
the Pride Hotel are also superior to others. The preference is given to loyal customer over other customers.
All in all facilities provided by HOTEL PRIDE (GLORIOUS GROUP) is highly satisfactory as compared to MAURYA SHERATON (ITC GROUP)
Recommendations
In this era of globalization where ‘Customer is the King’, customer expectations are going up which is making the situation more and more competitive. As the product is becoming generic in nature, the hotel industry can no longer rely on the traditional marketing strategies to retain the customers.
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Customer Relationship Management is one of the key tools to fight this cut throat competition and stand out as a superior brand.
On the basis of the study, I would like to recommend some suggestions which could be implemented profitably by the industry.
1. Surveys: Conducting monthly guest/customer surveys, club surveys, room comment cards, toll free guest assistance centers can help in getting customer feedback and to improve in the areas where there is a lag as suggested by the feedback.
2. Maintaining suggestion boxes at every touch point/point of interaction with the customers.
3. Taking feedback not only from external customers but also the internal customers i.e., the employees.
4. Proper check on the hotel staff’s and processes’ efficiency by the management, say by employing Mystery Customers.
5. Keeping regular track of the sales data for further leads and follow-up
6. Employing effective CRM software to improve guest satisfaction, lower operating costs, build guest loyalty, and increase revenues.
7. Having Guest History programs- keeping a databank of customer profiles along with such details as room preferences, amenities preferred, special requests, meal preferences, wallet services, sending birthday cards to the loyal guests and even their spouses and giving them a hassle-free check-in procedure-like sending them pick-up and drop facilities.
8. Employing an efficient system of complaints handling as complaints are the opportunities to improve, to impress the customers and to turn complaining customers into loyal ones.
9. Giving recognition awards to attract old customers.
10. Giving the customers a more personalized and empathic services as building good rapport with the customers goes along way in having satisfied and return customers.
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REFERNCES
Jay Curry (2006) - Key to CRM Success for Small and Medium-size Enterprises, from
www.customermarketing.com
Rama Mohana Rao, K. (2005), Services Marketing, Pearson Education
www.guestware.com
www.ascenantone.com/CRM.asp
www.crmdaily.com/perl/story/22438.html
www.expresscomputeronline.com/20030623/newsan1.shtml.
www.researchandmarkets.com/reportinfo.asp?cat_id=53&report_id=3929
www2.roanoke.com/columnists/shareef/5249.html
www.tajhotels.com
www.itchotels.com
www. crmguru.com
www.visiglobe.com
www.gloriousgroup.com
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